Process of scouring or cleaning wool.



. W. J. OROSTON.

PROCESS OF SGOURING 0R CLEANING WOOL.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 8, 1911.

1,006,726, Patented 0ct.24,l911.

WITNESSES: 11v VENTOR.

} I III m N A TTOR NE Y.

WILLIAM J.

; irnn saarns PATENT oi -r ce,

'on' BROOKLINE. nassleo su snsrs.

raoonss or soonrlrns on CLEANING wont.

enema Be it (nown may concern: ,1

that I, WILLIAM: J. CRosroN, a citizen of the'United States, residing in Lawrence, county of Essex, and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement Processes of scouring or Cleaning Wool, of which the following description, in

e connection with'the accompanying drawis sheared from the animalthe marked parts tions, to

are cut off separately and sold for waste, being known to the trade as paint clips. In practice, the paint clips are accumulated, and frequently wool marked with all three materials are mixed together.

The present invention has for its object to remove the materials used for marking, so that the waste wool may be freed and cleansed from the same and what is now a waste material may be converted into a highly useful product. For this purpose, the marked wool is subjected to the action of"a solution containing ingredients which will efiectively free the wool from the mate-- rials used to mark the same, and I have obtained excellent results with a solution composed of benzin, alcohol and bisulfid of carbon, preferably in the following proporwit :7parts benzin 86 proof, 5 parts methyl alcohol, and 3 parts bisulfid of carbon. The marked wool or paint clips are put into this solution and subjected to heat, which maybe imparted by a waterbath brought toboiling point.

To render the action of the solvent effective in the least possible time, the wool while saturated with the solvent is subjected to pressure so as to disintegrate or crush the marking material and open it up as it were,

so that the solvent can readily reach the wool and thereby effect the separation of the marking material from the wool without dissolving the entire mass of the marking material. This separation of the marking material from the wool when subjected to pressure usually takes but a few minutes, and may be effected by the operator kneading or pressing the wool in the bath by hand,

Specification of hetters IE'atent. Application filed February 8, 1911. Serial No. 07,898.

Pan a, 24%, rear.

CROSTON', LAWRENCE; MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR OE .SIX'EY ONE- aft r wh h e W0 s ag t te or sh ken to mechanically separate" the undissolved marking material from the wool; This shaking may be effected in the bathof s 01'.-

vent, after whichthe wool thus free d from the marking material 1s removed from'the solvent and subsequently washed witli soap,

and water in any suitable or desirednianner and as now commonly practiced in scouring Wool. i

The disintegration or opening up of the mass of marking material may be effected in the bath or it may be effected outsideof the bath, in which latter case the wool is again subjected to the action of the solvent either in the same bath or in a second bath.

The wool thus treated is rendered" fit'to be used for all the purposes for which lunmarked wool is used, and the cost of treat ing the now waste product is so small as to enable the treated wool to be sold'ata very material profit. I i

In some instances, the waste wool which is accumulated is marked with all three of the above materials, to wit: paint, pitch and tar,

and in other instances, with only two of the same materials, and while I prefer to use as a solvent the three ingredients above specified, I do not desire to limit the invention in this respect, as a very efi'ective solvent solution may be made by the combination of the bisulfid of carbon with either benzin or alcohol.

I may prefer to use methyl alcohol, but I do not desire to limit the invention in this respect, as ethyl alcohol may be used instead thereof.

I may prefer to dry been subjected to the solvent bath and agitate the same and free it from the dirt, sand, etc., before washing the same withthe soap and water, but I do not desire to limit the invention in this respect, as the wool may be taken from the solvent bath and directly subjected to the washing action of the soap and Water.

The solvent for the paint herein shown has no injurious efiect upon the wool; that is, it does not inany manner injure or kill the fiber of the wool.

The process above'described, may be practiced on a commercial scale with an apparatus such as shown in section in the drawing, wherein 10, 12 represent two vats or vessels arranged in closeproximity to each the wool after ithas.

other. Each of the vessel's" 10, '12, is properforated partition or bottom wall 18 below the level of the solvent bath 17, and upon which the wool clips 20 are supported.

The wool clips 20 are fed into one end of the vessel 10 and are moved through'the bath of solvent in the vessel 10 by suitable means, herein shown as rakes 21, 22, which are eccentrically connected with disks 23, 24, designed to be rotated in any suitable manner.

The rakes23, 24 serve to agitate the wool clips and feed it through the solvent bath in the vessel 10 to the s ueeze rolls 25, 26 of known construction, w ich are located at the delivery end-of the vessel 10. y

The s ueeze rolls 25,26, serve to subject the woo clips saturated with the solvent to pressure to crush or disintegrate oropen up the paint or other marking material, and put it mto efi'ective condition to be separated from the wool by the solvent bath in the vessel 12, through which'the partially treated wool clips are fed by the rakes 21,.

22, therein, and fed out thereof by the squeeze rolls 25, 26, which serve to express the solvent from the wool, and'place the wool in condition for thewashing machine not herein shown, but which may be such as now commonl used for securing and cleansing wool. uring the passage of the wool clips through the vesse 12, they are opened up and agitated by the rakes 21, 22, and the marking materiahwhich is crushed by the squeeze rolls 25, 26, of the vessel 10,

is mechanically separated and drops through the perforated plate 18 in the vessel 12 onto the false bottom 13 thereof, from which the marking material may be removed from.

time to time.

I have herein shown one form of apparatus for practicing the process of treating marked wool clips, but I do not desire to limit the invention to any particular form of apparatus.

The perforated bottom 18 inay be made in sections and rest upon cleats 30 on the lnflg the solvent, which latter may be drawn hrough an outlet pipe 31. Claims.

1. The process of freeing wool clips from I materials with which the are marked, which consists-in subjecting t e marked woolto the action of a solvent containing'benzin, alcohol and bisulfid of carbon, subjecting the wool thus treated to mechanical pressure to disintegrate the marking materials,

and agitating the wool thus treated to mechanically separate'the marking materials from the Wool, substantially as described.

2.- The process of freeing wool clips from materials with which'they are marked, which consists in subjecting the marked wool to the action of a solvent containing bisulfid v of carbon and alcohol, subjecting the wool thus treated to mechanical pressure to disintegrate the markmg materials, and agitating the wool thus treated to mechanically separate the marking materials from, the wool, substantially as described.

3. The process of freeing wool clips from materials with which they are marked, which consists in subjecting the marked wool to the action of a solvent containing bisulfid of carbon and benzin, subjecting the Wool thus treated to mechanical pressure to disintegrate the marking materials, and agitating the Wool thus treated to mechanically separate the marking materials from the 'wool, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof, I have signed'm name to thisspecification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM J. GROSTON.

Witnesses:

JAB. H. CHtmcH LL, J. MURPHY. 

